Why does my Samsung Galaxy S9 started to freeze and lag after a firmware update?

ByHarold Hisona August 16, 2018August 17, 2018 August 17, 2018

When a high-end smartphone like the Samsung Galaxy S9 started to freeze or lag, there could be a problem with the firmware especially if you just updated it. Some of our readers have contacted us because they just received an update but shortly after that their devices reported started to turn sluggish with random freezes and lags.

In this post, I will walk you through in troubleshooting your Galaxy S9 that freezes and lags. It may be because of an update but we’ll try to see what the problem really is and how to deal with it by doing some troubleshooting procedures. So, if you’re one of the owners of this device, or any smartphone for that matter, continue reading as this post may be able to help you one way or another.

Before going further, if you found this post because you were trying to find a solution to your problem, then try to visit our troubleshooting page as we’ve already addressed most of the commonly reported issues with the phone. We’ve already provided solutions to some of the problems reported by our readers so try to find issues that are similar with yours and use the solutions we suggested. If they don’t work for you and if you need further assistance, fill up our Android issues questionnaire and hit submit.

How to troubleshoot your Galaxy S9 that freezes and lags

YouTube video

Firmware issues can be fixed by doing some basic troubleshooting procedures and you can do it yourself. The following procedures have been proven effective in dealing with random freezes and lags caused by firmware updates or any other causes. Here’s what you need to do about this issue…

First solution: Run your phone in Safe Mode

This is to find out if these issues are caused by third-party apps and services. Nning your phone in safe mode will temporarily disable all third parties and if the phone runs normally in that mode, it means one of those apps or some of them is actually causing the problem. The next thing you should do is try to find out if there are pending updates for your apps and update them all. Or, find out which app causes the problem and uninstall it.

This is how you reboot your phone in safe mode:

Turn the device off.
Press and hold the Power key past the model name screen appearing on the screen.
When SAMSUNG appears on the screen, release the Power key.
Immediately after releasing the Power key, press and hold the Volume down key.
Continue to hold the Volume down key until the device finishes restarting.
When Safe mode appears in the bottom left corner of the screen, release the Volume down key.

However, if the phone is still sluggish while in safe mode, then move on to the nex solution.

Second solution: Wipe cache partition

One of the causes of firmware issues is corrupt system cache. It’s actually a group of temporary files used by the firmware to make your phone run smoothly but if they become corrupt or obsolete, things like this could happen. This is another possibility you need to rule out and here’s what you need to do about it:

Turn off the device.
Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Bixby key, then press and hold the Power key.
When the Android logo displays, release all three keys.
An ‘Installing system update’ message will show for 30 – 60 seconds before the Android system recovery menu options appear.
Press the Volume down key several times to highlight wipe cache partition.
Press Power key to select.
Press the Volume down key to highlight yes, them and press the Power key to select.
When the wipe cache partition is complete, Reboot system now is highlighted.
Press the Power key to restart the device.

If your phone still freezes and lags after this, then you have no other choice but to do the next procedure.

Third solution: Backup your files and reset your phone

This is your last resort and I am confident that this procedure will fix this problem. However, make sure to backup your important files and data prior to the reset as they will be deleted and you may no longer be able to retrieve them after.

Don’t worry, firmware issues can be fixed by a reset and this should be the end of the problem:

Back up data on the internal memory. If you have signed into a Samsung account on the device, you have activated Anti-theft and will need your Samsung credentials to finish the master reset.
Turn off the device.
Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Bixby key, then press and hold the Power key.
When the green Android logo displays, release all keys (‘Installing system update’ will show for about 30 – 60 seconds before showing the Android system recovery menu options).
Press the Volume down key several times to highlight ‘wipe data / factory reset’.
Press Power button to select.
Press the Volume down key until ‘Yes — delete all user data’ is highlighted.
Press Power button to select and start the master reset.
When the master reset is complete, ‘Reboot system now’ is highlighted.
Press the Power key to restart the device.

I hope that this troubleshooting guide can help you one way or another. If you have other issues you want to share with us, feel free to contact us or leave a comment below.

Connect with us

We are always open to your problems, questions and suggestions, so feel free to contact us by filling up this form. This is a free service we offer and we won’t charge you a penny for it. But please note that we receive hundreds of emails every day and it’s impossible for us to respond to every single one of them. But rest assured we read every message we receive. For those whom we’ve helped, please spread the word by sharing our posts to your friends or by simply liking our Facebook and Google+ page or follow us on Twitter.

Other posts that may also be helpful to you:

Leave a Reply